This might not help but: I've read in other forums people in WA complaining that they pay more for their bikes due to the distances involved in shipping. Check out bikeexchange.com.au to make up your own mind.
Cheers

125mm travel bikes are great for WA. The trails are being built at a fast rate and there's loads of jumps/rock gardens etc. Some of the newer trails that are under construction are all mountain, full of log jumps, decent, non-rollable doubles/gaps etc. The riding over here is quality, you'll love it.

As for the price of bikes, I think they're about the same. I could be wrong but I'm pretty sure the RRP for bikes is the same for the whole country. Perhaps as there's less competition you're less likely to get good discounts though....I havent bought a bike in WA yetso I'm speculating.

Santa Cruz in general seem to be a lot more popular over here than on the east coast. As for tallboys, I saw one this morning on the trails. There's probably quite a few but alas my eyes are attracted only to the 26 inch wheel.

Tall boys are available from TBE ( The Bicycle Entrepeneur). They have 5 shops in Perth they're proving really popular. 29 ers in general are proving real popular. One shop even described Perth as 29er country. Combination of a unique pea pebble gravel over hard base, no really steep hills, rocks and roots.

To a degree, I agree. Although I still don't have one, having said that. I am stubborn.

Looks like the prices for santa Cruz 29ers are significantly more expensive in WA than in the states. Maybe I should bring a couple over, figure out which is the best and sell the other. Gumtree looks like a good avenue.

Best you find out about any customs issues before you arrive. Coming over from NZ, Aussie customs wanted to know about the age of my bike to see if they could hit me with tax (I assume gst/duty)
Might pay to look into the ins and outs before you hit the tarmac?
As my bike is around 17 years old no issue for me.

As above, anything valued over AU$1000 will get hit with GST on entry (and not just bikes - also electronics, furniture, the lot if you're shipping your posessions over) - its why its not worth buying bikes online overseas and getting them shipped to WA.

Oh, and on tyres - definitely a chunky tire on the front to deal with the dreaded pea gravel. A common combo over here is Maxxis Ignitor 2.3 front paired to Crossmark 2.1 rear.

As for 29ers versus 26ers for Perth trails - yes 29ers are certainly getting popular over here, but personally I prefer to ride my long travel 26 on most of our trails, and my short travel 29er only really comes out for races and all day fire trail type rides where it has an advantage. However, a long travel 29er like the Tallboy LTC or Trance 29er may just be the perfect combination - and I say 'may' simply because I haven't had the opportunity to try either of them and form a judgement yet.

Anyway, good luck with the move over here, and if I see you out on the trails maybe you'll let me try out your Tallboy

Price on the LTc only about 10% higher. Not too bad at all. Hopefully when my household goods arrive, I don't get penalized.

I ended up picking up a couple 29ers based upon some of the recommendations.
1. Tallboy c set up 100mm fork and race ready.
2. Turner Sultan set up trail oriented with fox 34 140. The sultan 125mm rear travel.

I went with 2.25 racing Ralphs front and rear on the tallboy and a much more agressive 2.35 nobby nic on the sultan.

And unfortunately you will be hit with 10% GST on entry, negating the advantage of buying in the US. Components, however, are about twice the price in Oz, so I recommend you bring plenty of spares with you like cassettes, chains, brake pads etc.

Hopefully when my household goods arrive, I don't get penalized.

Very broadly, the rule is that you must have owned the goods in question for at least a year before you import them into Australia (and that includes bicycles), to avoid paying GST. I suggest you have a look at this information sheet to start with http://www.customs.gov.au/webdata/re...tionalMail.pdf and if you think it may be an issue, get some professional advice before you depart the US, as it could get expensive.

I went with 2.25 racing Ralphs front and rear on the tallboy and a much more agressive 2.35 nobby nic on the sultan.

My Anthem 29er came with RRs, but after one race on them I changed for something a bit more grippy - Maxxis Ardent on the front and Crossmark on the rear. RRs are fast, but have no purchase on the sandy/gravelly corners we have around here. Have no personal experience of NNs so can't comment there, but the general principle around here is to have a more agressive and wider tyre on the front, and something faster rolling on the rear. So, given the tyres you've already got, running NN front and RR rear on both bikes might be a good starting point, and then play around with them once you've had a bit of experience with our wonderful pea gravel!

Does anyone run tubeless tires out there? Are they recommended?

Yes, definitely recommended. The trails can be very rocky which results in a lot of pinch flats. Personally, I prefer proper UST rims & tires, which are a lot less hassle than conversions, and have the added advantage of tougher sidewalls to deal with the rocks. But, the convenience of UST certainly comes with a price and weight penalty, so many go down the route of tubeless conversions. And, unless your new bikes already have UST rims, conversion will certainly be the easiest and cheapest way for you to go tubeless.